Article of neckwear



April 1964 u. A. PETERMANN ETAL 3,128,470

ARTICLE OF NECKWEAR Filed Feb. 12, 1962 United States Patent 3,128,470 ARTICLE OF-NECKWEAR Ursula A. Peter-mam, 1900'W. Bittersweet'Place; Chicago 13, Ill., and Opal Allen, 519 E. 94th Sh, Chicago 19, Ill.

Filed Feb.12, 19'62,' Ser. No.-172,636 1 Claim; (Cl. 2-145) The present invention relates in general to articles of wearing apparel and, more particularly, to an article of neckwear suitable for attachment to button-down blouses, shirtwaists, shirts or the like. In its principal aspect, the invention is concerned with a tie which permits ofready attachment to, or detachment from, womens tailored blouses or the liked the type whichbuttondown the front.

While styles relating to various types of wearing apparel have, in the past, been subject to almost continual changes,-particularly in the field of womensfashions, there has been one particular article which has continued to embody the same basic design features-that is, tailored blouses, shirts or thelike. Such blouses are generally of the type employing buttons and'may'be worn either open at the neck or buttoned at the neck. One problem heretofore encountered with blouses'of the type which button down the front has been that of providing suitable neckwear which not only enhances the'overall appearance of the wearer, but which also hides the unattractive buttons and buttonholes of such blouses when the latter are worn closed'at the neck. The problem has been a particularly vexing one in cold climates where individuals are averse to wearing shirts open at the neck.

In an eifort to provide a solution to this continuing problem which permits use of such front-buttoned blouses, repeated attempts have been made by those in the garment industry to devise a suitable piece of neckwear which is both acceptable to consumers and which can be utilized with button-down blouses, shirts or the like, particularly those worn by women. Kerchiefs, scarves and other tie-around neck novelties have been suggested as one possible solution. However, the bulky material of such items whenwrapped about the neck has not only proved uncomfortable to the wearer, but has also caused suitcoa'ts' to fit improperly. wearer desires to remove the" neckwear while out and wear the shirt unbuttoned'at the neck, a problem arises as to where to put these bulky items.

Particularly objectionableto women have been those Moreover, when the articles of ready-made "neckwear which must be put'on and removed by passing the attachment devices over the head such, for example, as elasticbands having some form of tie or other novelty located at the front. Since this type of neckwear interferes withand disturbs hair arrangements, it has met with virtually'no commercial acceptance by women consumers. Norhave articleswhich clip on to the collar proved acceptable since blouses are generally made of soft and unstarched material rather than the relatively stiff collar material used on mens shirts and which-is much more suitable for retaining such clipon devices. Additionally, such clip-on devices generally attach directly to the collar, while more often than not womens fashions require an article which fits beneath the collar at the front of the neck.

Since, prior to applicants invention, no commercially 3,128,470 Patented Apr. 14, 1964 acceptable solution to'the problem of front-buttoned blouseshad-been found, the garment industry turned to blouses which buttoned down the back. However, such blouses are difficult to close and, moreover, cannot be opened or loosened at the neck..

It is a general aim of the present invention to provide an improved article of wearing apparel for use with frontbuttoned blouses which overcomes all of the aforementioned disadvantages and whichmay be made of relatively inexpensive material at a low manufacturing cost.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved article of neckwear which may be securely attached to a blouse or the like and characterized by the fact that when once attached, the neckwear remains in place and will'not shift or droop. A related object of the invention is to provide an article of neckwear which is comfortable for the user and which may be readily attached to and removed from a blouse.

A further object of the invention is to provide a tie or the like which may be securely attached to a frontbuttoned shirt in either of two alternative positions. Stated another way, it is an object of the invention to provide a reversible tie which may be selectively secured to a front-buttoned shirt with either face outwardly presented.

More specifically, it is an object of the invention to provide a tie or the like which permits of ready attachmentto conventional front-buttoned blouses, yet which requires no separate hooks or other objectionable fasteners and wherein the fastening means are totally concealed when the tie is attached.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention are attained by the construction and arrangement shown as an exemplary embodiment in the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary front elevation of a typical blouse or the like'of the type which buttons down the front;

FIG; 2 is a plan view of an article of neckwear embodying the features of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary elevational view similar to FIG. 1 and disclosing a blouse with the article of neckwear shown in FIG. 2 attached thereto; and,

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 44 of FIG. 3 and disclosing the details of the fastening means for neckwear embodying the features of the invention.

While the present invention is susceptible of various modifications and alternative constructions, an illustrative embodiment thereof has been shown in the drawing and will-herein-be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that it is-not intended to limit the invention to the particular form disclosed, but, on the contrary, the'intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents; and alternative constructions falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claim.

Referring more specifically to FIG. 1, there is illustrated a blouse, shirtwaist, shirt or the'like, generally in- .dicated at 10, of the type adapted to be buttoned down latter is closed. For the purpose of closing the front panels 16, 18 of the blouse, a plurality of vertically spaced buttons, two such buttons 19, 20 being illustrated, are securely attached to the front panel 18. The buttons 19, 2t are positioned to be selectively passed through and engaged with corresponding vertically spaced buttonholes 21, 22 formed in the front panel 16 of the blouse it). As here illustrated, the uppermost button 19 and its corresponding buttonhole 21 are in close proximity to the neck area 11 of the blouse, thus permitting the latter to be snugly buttoned about the neck of the wearer when desired.

It will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art upon inspection of FIG. 1, that the buttons and buttonholes, particularly those in the neck area 11, seriously detract from the appearance of the garment. And, of course, when such a garment is worn beneath a suitcoat or the like (not shown), this particular area of the shirt stands out due to the contrasting materials, thus emphasizing the unattractiveness of such fasteners.

In accordance with one of the important aspects of the present invention, there is provided a novel article of neckwear which can be readily attached to a frontb uttoned blouse or the like so as to conceal the unattractive blouse fasteners and which is decorative in appearance, yet which requires no separate fastening devices such as hooks or clips, and which does not wrap entirely around the neck of the wearer. In the exemplary form of the invention shown in FIG. 2, the article of neckwear is generally in the form of a tie 24 having laterally projecting wing portions 25, 26. The medial portion 28 of the tie 24 is here shown as reduced in width.

For the purpose of securely attaching the tie 24 to the blouse 10, the medial portion 28 of the tie has formed therein a buttonhole 29 suitable for coupling engagement with the uppermost button 19 of the blouse 10. To strengthen the tie and prevent tearing of the material in the vicinity of the buttonhole 29, a row of stitching 30 is formed in the tie in surrounding relationship to the buttonhole 29.

As best illustrated in FIG. 3, the tie 24 is attached to the blouse M by coupling the uppermost button 19 with the buttonhole 29. The tie 21 is folded along a line 31 which extends transversely across the medial portion 28 thereof so as to enable both wing portions 25, 26 to depend from the point of support provided by the button 19. As here shown, the tie 24 is attached to the blouse It in such a manner that the tab portions 14, 15 of the collar 12 overlie portions of the wings 25, 26, thus preventing the tie from unnecessary flopping and insuring a neatly tailored appearance. It would, however, be entirely feasible to secure the tie 24 to the blouse so that the tab portions 14, of the collar 12 lie beneath the tie material and, with certain blouses having particular collar configurations, this latter manner of attachment might be preferable.

Of course, in those instances where the buttonhole 29 is precisely centered relative to the opposed tips of the wing portions 25, 26, the fold line 31 will be slightly ofi-set from the center of the tie, thus insuring that one wing (e.g., wing will terminate at a point spaced below the tip of the other wing (e.g., wing 26). Such an arrangement serves to add to the attractiveness of the tie 24.

One of the significant features of the present invention resides in the fact that when attached to the uppermost button 19 of the blouse 10 in the manner heretofore described, the outermost wing portion, here shown as wing 26, of the tie overlies both the button 19 and the buttonhole 29 formed in the tie. Thus, the fastening means for the tie are entirely concealed from view. Moreover, the depending portions of the tie effectively conceal the unattractive buttons and buttonholes formed in that portion of the blouse which is normally visible when an outer suitcoat is worn. 1

As a consequence of forming a buttonhole 29 in the medial portion 28 of the tie 24, the latter may be more firmly secured to the blouse 10' than has heretofore been possible. Referring particularly to FIGS. 3 and 4 conjointly, it will be observed that when the tie 24 is attached to the button 19, the latter is snugly received within the upper portion of the buttonhole 29. The transverse fold line 31 of the tie 24, is, therefore, immediately adjacent the upper edge of the button 19. This arrangement insures that the tie 24 will remain in substantially the position in which it is attached without slipping down, thereby precluding exposure of that portion of the blouse, and fastening devices therefore, in the vicinity of the neck area I l, and insuring that the transverse fold line 31 will remain in substantially the position illustrated.

Incidentally, it will be appreciated that a tie made in accordance with the illustrative form of the invention enjoys yet another decided advantage. Since the buttonhole 29 in the exemplary tie 24 extends completely through the material, the tie may be readily reversed. Thus, the versatility of the tie is greatly increased since different colors and/or patterns may be applied to the opposite sides of the tie, thereby rendering it usable with different colored ensembles.

It will be appreciated that articles of neckwear made in accordance with the present invention are advantageously suitable for ready attachment to or removal from front-buttoned shirts or the like. Once attached, the tie will remain in position until it is aifirrnatively removed without the necessity of providing separate hooks, clips or other fastening devices. The tie cannot slip relative to the collar and will not loosen so as to expose the neck area of the shirt. Moreover, it may be used with virtually any type of front-buttoned shirt having virtually any type of collar configuration or, for that matter, no collar at all. It can be readily attached to shirts irrespective of whether the collar is relatively stiff or relatively soft. Finally, there is no need for confining neckbands which must be slipped over the head or which must be hooked at the back of the neck. Because of its small size, the tie may be removed and stored in a pocket or the like, thus permitting the user to wear the shirt opened at the neck when desired.

Of course, while the exemplary tie 24 is here shown having a particular configuration, i.e., a pair of laterally projecting wing portions 25, 26 dimensioned considerably larger than the interconnecting medial portion 28, other configurations could be employed and still fall within the spirit and scope of the invention. Merely by way of example, the tie could be ribbon-like in configuration with the buttonhole displaced from the medial portion of the tie. It is simply necessary that the tie include a buttonhole suitable for attachment to the uppermost button of a front-buttoned blouse and a portion adapted to be folded down into position overlapping the button and buttonhole, thereby effectively concealing the fastening means. The tie may, of course, be made of virtually any pliable and sewable material and can be suitably decorated to pleasantly enhance the ensemble with which it is to be worn.

We claim as our invention:

In combination with a front-buttoned blouse having a button disposed in proximity to the blouse neck and between the opposed tab portions of the blouse collar, a tie formed of an elongated generally flat sheet of pliable material, said tie having a relatively narrow medial portion and relatively wide first and second substantially identical wing portions projecting therefrom, the medial portion of said tie having a single button hole formed therein and extending entirely therethrough for attachment to said button in a selectable one of two reversible positions, said tie being foldable along a transverse line immediately adjacent to the upper end of said button hole when said tie is attached to said button whereby said first and second wing portions both depend from References Cited in the file of this patent said button with one of said wing portions overlying said button hole and the associated button so as to effectively UNITE) STATES PATENTS conceal both the button hole and the button, said button- 1,820,376 cralghea'd 1931 hole being centered with respect to said first and second 5 2,400,604 y 21, 1946 wing portions and extending longitudinally through said 2,886,823 Kuhlman y 19, 1959 tie so that it extends vertically when attached to said FOREIGN PATENTS button with the button being dISPOSEd at the upper end 12,622 Great Britain of 1884 of the button hole whereby the underlying wing portion terminates at a point spaced below the tip of the over- 10 lying wing portion. 

